SHOCKING: Electricity rates shoot up 7% in three months (March to June 2007)

A large part of my job at Verdiem is to advise senior executives in large organizations on how to measure, analyze and manage energy consumption of IT equipment, particularly PCs and monitors, which account for up to 40% of the average IT department's carbon footprint and electricity usage.

For obvious reasons, I keep a close eye on electricity rates, especially in the Western US where most of my clients are based. Despite the high level of media attention on energy issues, I was shocked to see that electricity rates on average increased 7% between March and June 2007.

Here is a breakdown of electricity rate increases in the Western States during this period (March to June 2007):

Hawaii: $0.21 per kWh (6% Increase)

California: $0.14 per kWh (9% Increase)

Alaska: $0.13 per kWh (7% Increase)

Texas: $0.11 per kWh (4% Increase)

Nevada: $0.10 per kWh (9% Increase)

Arizona: $0.09 per kWh (12% Increase)

Colorado: $0.08 per kWh (5% Increase)

Montana: $0.08 per kWh (no change)

Oklahoma: $0.08 per kWh (4% Increase)

New Mexico: $0.08 per kWh (5% Increase)

Utah: $0.07 per kWh (2% Increase)

Oregon: $0.07 per kWh (10% Increase)

Washington: $0.06 per kWh (4% Increase)

Wyoming: $0.05 per kWh (3% Increase)

Idaho: $0.05 per kWh (11% Increase)

Source: http://www.neo.ne.gov/statshtml/115.htm